Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced that the 16 people who have been charged for signing certificates claiming that former President Donald Trump won the state in the 2020 presidential election have been arraigned and pleaded not guilty.
Each of the individuals was charged with eight felony counts: two counts of forgery, one count of conspiracy to commit forgery, two counts of election law forgery, one count of conspiracy to commit election law forgery, one count of conspiracy to commit uttering and publishing, and one count of uttering and publishing. The defendants were arraigned on the charges between July 21 and Aug. 10.
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The cases for the 16 defendants were all assigned to Judge Kristen D. Simmons. As a stipulation for release after the not guilty plea, the defendants are not permitted to travel out of state without the court's permission, among other requirements.
Mari-Ann Henry was arraigned on July 21, Meshawn Maddock was arraigned on July 25, William "Hank" Choate was arraigned on Aug. 1, Kent Vanderwood was arraigned on Aug. 4, Marian Sheridan was arraigned on Aug. 7, and Rose Rook and Stanley Grot were arraigned on Aug. 8.
The other defendants were arraigned on Thursday. The other accused include Kathy Berden, Amy Facchinello, Clifford Frost, John Haggard, Timothy King, Michele Lundgren, James Renner, Mayra Rodriguez, and Ken Thompson.
The attorney general's office also said the investigation remains ongoing and that they have "not ruled out potential charges against additional defendants."
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Trump lost to President Joe Biden in Michigan in 2020 by roughly 154,000 votes, but in an effort to remain in the White House, the Trump campaign allegedly put forward slates of electors for the Electoral College that would vote in favor of Trump rather than Biden. The scheme was unsuccessful, and Biden won the Electoral College vote in December 2020, which was certified in January 2021.
The former president is facing his own legal challenges related to his alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election. He was charged in a federal court in Washington, D.C., earlier this month and appears likely to be charged in Georgia later this month.